Is it time for NCC to consider offering Minors?

by Nancy Moreau, Professor of Education

I think it is time to allow our students to pursue a minor in addition to their major program courses. I’ll specifically talk a Secondary Education minor and I will present my case for such an option. I have run this past the Dean and the response was that we don’t have minors at NCC, but does that mean we can never have one? It’s finally happened. There are significant teacher shortages both in public schools this state and throughout the country. Students have shunned the job of a teacher for any number of reasons. Gov. Wolfe is pushing for a minimum starting salary of $45,000 for all teachers in PA. The starting salary is more like $50K in the Pocono region and the Lehigh Valley. Combine that with health benefits, retirement and a work schedule of 180 days, and teaching may be a very good option for many of our students. As a matter of fact, I hear from many students, especially those majoring in English and History, that their ultimate goal is to teach high school. When a student leaves NCC without the Education foundation courses, field experience hours, the understanding of clearances and the Praxis Core Exams, they are a year behind their peers at the four year institution. We, in the Education Department, would love to work closely with Departments to make sure these students get the four courses they need so they will be able to graduate on time from a four year institution. We can now enroll these students in our Secondary Education program and give them what they need in Education and also in the content area. However, Education, still has a negative connotation to many. Students would prefer to say that they are an English (or Biology, or Math, etc) major rather than an Education major. So how do we address that? My solution is create an Education minor? What do you think about NCC offering a minor? Would it work for your Department?